1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed toward a method of identifying a plurality of items using labels containing electronic article surveillance (EAS) devices. More specifically, the method pertains to forming a packaging unit comprising a plurality of items, at least one but less than all of which have a label containing an EAS device applied thereto. In another aspect, the invention is directed to methods and apparatus for efficient in-line production and product application of EAS (preferably RFID) bearing labels.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The tracking and identification of products from the manufacturer to the retailer is an important and vital business operation. In the context of large retailers, knowing exact quantities of inventory and where it is located at any given time is essential to the proper distribution of goods throughout its retail network. Furthermore, tight inventory control has the added benefit of deterring theft of goods during the distribution process.
EAS devices have been employed to assist in theft prevention at the retail level for many years. EAS devices are applied to individual items and are then removed or deactivated upon purchase of a particular item. If the consumer attempts to remove the item from the store while the EAS device is active, sensing equipment usually located proximate the store exit detects the active EAS device and sounds an alarm. This method of product monitoring has the disadvantages in that the EAS device is oftentimes visible to the potential thief who may remove it from the product prior to exiting the store thereby circumventing the EAS security system. Furthermore, application of the EAS devices to the product can damage the overall aesthetics of the product.
Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags have the capability to store information related to a product on an integrated circuit. The information is retrieved through an RFID interrogation device. Applying RFID tags to individual devices has the drawback of being relatively expensive in that the tags themselves can be costly and numerous checks must be performed through the manufacturing and tag application process to prevent application of a defective tag to a product.
Methods and apparatus for the production of RFID-bearing labels have been previously described. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,451,154; 6,334,921; 5,897,741; 6,281,795; 6,162,550; 5,867,102; and 6,527,888, as well as U.S. Published Applications 2002/0195194, 2002/0195195, and 2003/0136503 are exemplary references of this character. However, these references do not teach or suggest methods wherein RFID-bearing labels are created in-line and then immediately applied to products, which limits the utility and commercial desirability of these prior proposals.
There is a real an unfulfilled need in the art for a method of tracking and identifying items which is less expensive than application of RFID tags to each individual product and less susceptible to circumvention by would-be thieves. Additionally, the art fails to teach commercially optimum techniques for the production and immediate application of EAS or RFID-bearing labels.